Mikel is a child of the universe. Born into the Synanon cult, he was given to The School at six months old to be raised by the community, rather than his biological parents. The children were taught to fend for themselves, to self-soothe, and to be independent. Some parents, including Mikel's, visited the school occasionally. He described them as ghosts, drifting in and out unexpectedly. Mikel lived this way until five years old.

Mikel's mother escaped the cult and took her sons, Mikel age five and Tony age seven, with her. They moved to Oregon with another former cult member, Phil, but were quickly discovered by some of the members. Phil paid the price - taking a brutal beating but refusing to give up the location of the boys or their mother. Helplessly, Tony and Mikel watched as Phil nearly lost his life in exchange for their protection. Self-absorbed and stuck in her own cycle of depression and abuse, the boys' mother offered no comfort and actually outright dismissed the traumatic event the boys witnessed confusing their perceptions of reality and trust in authority.

Tony and Mikel's father, Jimmy, drifted in and out of their early lives. He had also been part of Synanon and moved to California when he left the cult. When he started dating Bonnie, a former cult member who had taken care of the boys in The School at Synanon, the boys started spending more time with them. Bonnie and their father provided love and a sense stability. They respected the boys and were clearly proud and happy to have them as part of their lives though they feared, especially Jimmy, that the boys would follow in his troubled footsteps of jail, heroin, and a life on the edge.

By age ten, Mikel was smoking cigarettes and experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Tony was constantly getting in trouble and quickly showing signs of drug and alcohol addiction. Unable to care for the boys properly, they each chose to live with Bonnie and their father at various points rather than their mother. She suffered major bouts of depression and seemed to live in constant denial, focusing only on her needs. To her, the boys owed her an enormous debt for their lives and it was their job to take care of their mother. By putting her own emotional and physical needs first, she further debilitated their sense of self worth. For as much love and stability that Bonnie and Jimmy were able to provide, they could seemingly never repair the damage that had been done to the boys during their first years of life.

This was an incredible story of survival and perseverance and Jollett's writing was emotional and transportative. The honesty and self-reflection, -awareness, and -analysis were refreshing and humbling. I originally expected this memoir to be more about Jollett's time in the cult, however, because he left at five years old, it was more his life story after the cult and the cult's impact on his entire being. A life full of trauma, abuse, love, and confusion, Hollywood Park is a memoir I won't soon forget. For anyone with any interest in psychology and the impacts of trauma, neglect, and abuse, this one is for you.

This was a captive story of Mikel Jollett from in the perspective of him as child into an adult. Now, I will be honest with you, I’ve never heard of Jollett before this book, however, his story still had my attention. Jollett is a great storyteller and he did a fantastic job telling the raw, honest, interesting, and engaging coming of age story.


Thank you Celadon and NetGalley for a sample.copy